Water meeting 'productive'

The key discussions were around the shortcomings of the Murray Darling Basin Authority discussion paper on the Murray Darling Basin Plan review and the need to ensure Northern Victorian people prepared submissions for the review.

The VFF has been critical of the lack of recognition of agriculture and food production in the plan discussion paper.

The VFF put to Ms Tierney that water purchases should cease and there should be no changes to the sustainable diversion limit, an increase in funding to communities under the sustainable community fund, calculations carried out on the impact of reducing water on food production output and the maximising of the use of current environmetal water already held.

The VFF also sought funding for the Victorian Prospectus Project, which looks to review the Goulburn-Murray Irrigation District footprint and find efficiencies.

The prospectus was developed by the Victorian Government following changes to the Murray Darling Basin Plan that allowed the Commonwealth to take more water for the environment.

Before these changes, the 450 gigalitres of additional water for the environment could not be recovered in ways that had negative social and economic impacts on communities. All states and the Federal Government agreed to this condition in 2018. The changes also removed these protections.

VFF representative Andrew Leahy said the meeting had a productive discussion.

“The minister understood the impacts of taking more water from rural communities and continued to oppose the Commonwealth’s non-strategic purchase of water,” he said.